Botswana seeks grains from Brazil and Australia due to the El Niño phenomenon

Published 2024년 5월 21일

Tridge summary

Botswana is looking to import grains from Australia and Brazil due to the worst drought in 40 years, driven by the El Niño climate phenomenon. The Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board is resorting to maritime trade for maize and sorghum as regional supplies from Zimbabwe and South Africa fall short. This underscores the severe drought impact in southern Africa, with the Southern African Development Community seeking $5.5 billion in aid. Botswana has not imported maize from Brazil since at least 2003, making these imports extraordinary. The drought has drastically reduced the area for summer crops, and President Mokweetsi Masisi may declare a drought emergency following a nationwide assessment.

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Original content

Botswana is taking the unprecedented step of seeking to import grains from Australia and Brazil, after the El Niño climate phenomenon caused the worst drought in 40 years, according to Bloomberg. With drought devastating the crop in Botswana and its southern African neighbours, the Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board said the government's Grain Security Agency, responsible for maintaining strategic reserves, is turning to maritime trade of both maize and sorghum. Guaranteed imports from neighboring Zimbabwe and South Africa were deemed insufficient. Coping with drought “We continue to explore distant countries, such as Brazil and Australia,” Adelaide Johnson, spokeswoman for the Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board, said in response to queries. “The plan is to import regionally and internationally to increase the expected small yield.” The move is another sign of the devastation caused by drought across the region. On Monday, the 16-nation Southern African Development Community ...

Source: Almalnews